The season-long CGA Team Interclub Championship will conclude its ninth year next weekend when the CGA-owned CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora hosts the finals.
Over the years, 10 different clubs have advanced to the finals of the Team Interclub. And half of those have made at least two finals appearances. But the two clubs that have qualified for the finals most of all are The Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs and Rifle Creek Golf Course in Rifle.
And guess who the two 2018 finalists are who will square off on Oct. 20 at CommonGround?
That’s right — The Broadmoor and Rifle Creek.
The Broadmoor will be making its fourth appreance in the finals and Rifle Creek its third. But the only time either club has actually won the title was in the one previous year that they squared off in the finals, 2014. The Broadmoor earned the trophy that year with a 23-13 victory. This year will mark the first time two teams have met twice or more in the Interclub finals.
(For the record, the other three clubs that have made the Team Interclub finals more than once are Lone Tree, Todd Creek and Battlement Mesa. And Lone Tree remains the only two-time champion of the event, having won in 2011 and ’12, though The Broadmoor would give LT company should it beat Rifle Creek next weekend.)
The CGA Team Interclub stands apart among CGA championships. Every other championship on the schedule is contested over the course of one to four days. The Team Interclub, on the other hand, typically lasts five months or more, with a regular-season round-robin of geographically-linked groups of teams going from May through July, then a 16-team single-elimination playoff from August to October.
Both in the regular season and the playoffs, teams of eight golfers each — of widely varying abilities — square off, with net singles and net four-ball matches held concurrently. Each individual match is worth two points — two for a win and one for a tie. Rosters can vary throughout the season.
This year’s original CGA Team Interclub field featured 32 teams, up six from last year. The record number of team entrants for the event was 64 in 2013. Notably, both Rifle Creek and The Broadmoor come from the two round-robin groups that are the furthest from Denver.
Two changes took effect for this year’s Team Interclub — going from teams of 12 to teams of eight, and teams are now comprised of four “A” players of low handicap indexes of 9.9 and under and four “B” players of low handicaps between 10 and 20.
Both clubs in this fall’s Team Interclub finals are undefeated going into the last match of the year, with The Broadmoor being 6-0 and Rifle Creek 5-0-1, with the tie coming against Battlement Mesa during the regular season.
The Broadmoor is the top seed in the playoff bracket, having scored more points in the regular season (57) than any other club, but it was tested in getting to the finals. Representatives of the Colorado Springs-based resort course edged Lone Tree and Elmwood by 14-10 margins in the round of 16 and the quarterfinals, respectively, before beating The Meadows 16-8 in the semifinals. The Broadmoor’s previous finals appearances came in 2014, ’15 and ’16.
Seventh-seeded Rifle Creek, a public course that also made it to the finals in 2012 and ’14, defeated Broken Tee Englewood 17-7 in the round of 16 and Mariana Butte 16-8 in the quarterfinals. Then in the semis, RC ousted defending Team Interclub champion Saddle Creek/Murphy Creek, 16-8.
When The Broadmoor and Rifle Creek met in 2014 for the title, it was the first of three straight final appearances for the Colorado Springs club. The 23-13 win gave The Broadmoor a 7-0 record that 2014 season. In fact, it won all seven of its matches by double-digit margins.
Four Broadmoor players on that winning team in 2014 will compete again in the finals on Oct. 20: Mike Allred, Ron Crowder, Roger Perry and Scott Meagher. And five Rifle Creek competitors from that 2014 runner-up team are back: Jeb Savage, Tod Smith, Mark Sours, Michael Higginbotham and Pat Hays.
The Team Interclub finals will conclude the 2018 CGA championship season.
CGA Team Interclub Finals Pairings
Singles
Mike Allred (B) vs. Jeb Savage (RC)
Curtis Olson (B) vs. Tod Smith (RC)
Ron Crowder (B) vs. Cole Manupella (RC)
Luke Travins (B) vs. Eric Copen (RC)
Joe Diver (B) vs. Mark Sours (RC)
Roger Perry (B) vs. Michael Higginbotham (RC)
Tom Haggard (B) vs. Tim Roe (RC)
Scott Meagher (B) vs. Pat Hays (RC)
Four-Ball
Allred/Olson (B) vs. Savage/Smith (RC)
Crowder/Travins (B) vs. Manupella/Copen (RC)
Diver/Perry (B) vs. Sours/Higginbotham (RC)
Haggard/Meagher (B) vs. Roe/Hays (RC)
Road to the 2018 CGA Team Interclub Finals
THE BROADMOOR
Regular Season (3-0 with 57 points)
— Defeated The Club at Flying Horse 18-6
— Defeated Garden of the Gods Club 15-9
— Defeated Colorado Springs Country Club 24-0
Playoffs
— Round of 16: Defeated Lone Tree 14-10
— Quarterfinals: Defeated Elmwood 14-10
— Semifinals: Defeated The Meadows 16-8
RIFLE CREEK
Regular Season (2-0-1 record with 45 points)
— Defeated Glenwood Springs 15-9
— Tied with Battlement Mesa 12-12
— Defeated Lincoln Park 18-6
Playoffs
— Round of 16: Defeated Broken Tee Englewood 17-7
— Quarterfinals: Defeated Mariana Butte 16-8
— Semifinals: Defeated 2017 champion Saddle Rock/Murphy Creek 16-8
For more information on the CGA Team Interclub, CLICK HERE and go to CGA Team Interclub tab.
